


Haven't I proven myself?

by AvaHasAClosetMurderBoard



Category: Green Arrow and the Canaries (TV)
Genre: F/F, It was supposed to be heavy angst but my finger slipped, Light Angst, Pre-Relationship, based on a prompt, first hug?, soft couch cuddles
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-31
Updated: 2020-03-31
Packaged: 2021-02-28 23:47:19
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,444
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23415520
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AvaHasAClosetMurderBoard/pseuds/AvaHasAClosetMurderBoard
Summary: 'She’d worked things out. She’d double checked and triple checked. Their target should have been in his villa completely unaware he was going to have company, not with an entire squad of hired mercs and the SCPD to boot just waiting for them to show up.And Dinah thinks that’s all Laurel’s fault, somehow.'
Relationships: Dinah Drake & Earth-2 Laurel Lance, Dinah Drake/Earth-2 Laurel Lance
Comments: 4
Kudos: 66





	Haven't I proven myself?

**Author's Note:**

  * For [ShipsAreSparksOfLife](https://archiveofourown.org/users/ShipsAreSparksOfLife/gifts).



> Based on a prompt I got from my favorite Bagayto:  
> 'There's a couch or smth they can sit on, Laurel is baffled by Dinah and throws a "you don't think I've changed haven't I proven myself" and Dinah is like super offended that she would think that'
> 
> It was supposed to be super angsty but it came out soft instead, oops :P   
> Hope you still like it! 
> 
> A huge thank you again to @WardenRoot for the beta ♥

“You think I did it on purpose.”

It’s not spoken as a question, but more as an affirmation, and Dinah remains impassive, arms folded above her chest. There’s not even a sliver of doubt in her piercing gaze and that’s what hurts Laurel the most. She’s been wracking her mind ever since things went sideways, all the why’s and how’s that could explain the information she’d gotten turning out to be bogus. Laurel had followed and bugged the target herself, and had spent more time than one should scanning and compiling through all the information, to make sure they had a location and a time to strike. 

She’d worked things out. She’d double checked and triple checked. Their target should have been in his villa completely unaware he was going to have company, not with an entire squad of hired mercs and the  _ SCPD  _ to boot just waiting for them to show up. 

And Dinah thinks that’s all Laurel’s fault, somehow.

“I don’t know, Laurel, you tell me.” She takes a few steps towards the couch, until she’s almost standing right in front of where Laurel’s sitting. “It seems oddly convenient that our target knew when and where we were coming - not to mention we’re talking about someone who you used to have ties with back then.”

“So what? Are you implying I tipped him off?” Laurel hisses between clenched teeth. “You’re supposed to know me better than that, D.”

Dinah uncrosses her arms then, her gaze seemingly unforgiving, and Laurel feels like she’s suddenly back to another time and another place, when they used to be on different sides of the field. It stings more than anything ever could when Dinah chooses to remain quiet instead of reassuring Laurel. “You don’t think I’ve changed,” she lets out with a finality when the entire situation finally sinks in on her, and hearing those words coming out of her own mouth after all they’ve been together drains the fight completely out of her. Laurel’s shoulders slump and she averts her gaze, hating the way her voice cracks as she asks, “Haven’t I proven myself?”

  
  


“God, Laurel, that’s not what I meant at all.” There’s some shifting, and she feels the couch dipping as Dinah takes a seat right next to her and reaches for Laurel’s hands with her own. Her grip is surprisingly soft for someone who was looking so angry not even a minute earlier. “I know you’ve changed and  _ I trust you _ -” she pauses to gently squeeze her hands- “but I also happen to know that man has saved your life once before, back in the day.”

Her eyes go wide in surprise and she turns her face to meet Dinah’s gaze. She hadn’t expected her to know that - Laurel’s pretty sure no one knows what transpired that day, save for her and their target. All the evidence had been either destroyed or  _ taken care of  _ before the police arrived. “How?”

Dinah flashes her a little smile. “You’re not as good at covering your tracks as you think you are - and besides, I knew something was up the moment you insisted on running surveillance on him yourself. That’s always your least favorite part.”

“I guess that covers the little  _ ‘knowing me well’  _ part...” 

“I guess it does.” Dinah’s eyes flicker down for a moment and she chews on her bottom lip, and Laurel’s pretty sure she knows what she’s about to say before she finds the words to do so. “You could have told me.”

It’s her turn to try and find the right words, to explain why she had decided to keep that little big detail from Dinah in the first place. Laurel’s still not very good at the whole feelings thing - it’s a work in progress, especially with sharing how she feels - so it takes her a few minutes longer than it probably should have. She’s glad when Dinah just patiently waits instead of pushing, and Laurel’s eyes unconsciously flicker to where her hands are still gently being held. It makes her feel safe. “Remember when we first saw each other here in the future and I asked for your help? You said you thought you were done with that part of your life.” She pauses to let out a breath through her nose. “That’s how I felt when I saw his name pop up on the screen.”

Laurel barely has time to register what’s happening until there’s a pair of arms wrapped securely around her torso and she finds herself pressed against Dinah.

_ She’s hugging her.  _

Dinah radiates warmth in a way Laurel had never expected her to, and her own body betrays her state of mind by melting  _ right into it. _ They’ve never been this close, this  _ intimate  _ before, and she doesn’t know why it feels as right as it does. Her own arms move out of their own will to wrap around Dinah’s torso, and Laurel ends up tucking her chin safely in the crook of Dinah’s neck. That flowery scent that is so  _ hers _ is particularly strong there, despite all the sweat and grime from the fight, and Laurel unconsciously finds herself nuzzling into it. 

“I’m sorry,” Dinah speaks out suddenly, her breath ghosting against the shell of Laurel’s ear, making her shiver. “I shouldn’t have assumed you shared the wrong intel on purpose.”

“It’s okay, you had the right to-”

“No, I didn’t,” she firmly cuts Laurel off. “I should have trusted you and I honestly understand if you think you owe this guy.”

Laurel lets out a low chuckle, the sound mostly muffled against Dinah’s hair. “You’re too good to me, Dinah Drake.”

“Because you  _ deserve it _ , Laurel. Just promise me that if there’s a next time someone from your past pops up on our radars, you’ll tell me right from the start.”

There’s a lighter edge to her voice when she speaks. “I can do that.”

“Good.”

Laurel’s not even sure for how long they just sit there holding each other, but she fully embraces the comfort and peace it brings. She’s been pretty good at controlling her heartbeat so far, even if her heart feels like it wants to soar out of her chest and into Dinah’s own, which is a complete whole new level of feeling she’s not prepared for. 

Dinah seems to have other plans, though.

She feels herself being pulled forwards, a  _ ‘what’  _ escaping her lips as Dinah maneuvers them both downwards on the couch, and soon enough Laurel finds herself awkwardly laying on Dinah’s chest. It’s new and exhilarating, and Laurel doesn’t know what to do or what to say. She doesn’t pull away but also doesn’t move, and she wonders if Dinah can feel just how fast her heart is beating at that moment. Laurel feels Dinah’s chest dipping down before she lets out a breath through her nose, and one of her hands moves from resting on her torso. There are gentle fingers carding through her hair not a second later, and Laurel can’t help the small sigh that escapes her at the motion. 

Her tense muscles begin to relax as she melts once more against Dinah’s body, and - taking into consideration how Dinah pauses her motions and seems to hold her breath - it surprises them both when Laurel actually shifts to better rest against her. She knows she’s probably going to get yelled at later for placing her dirty boots on Dinah’s pristine couch, but she doesn’t care. All she wants is to better seek and enjoy the comfort so willingly being offered, and as such Laurel decides to allow herself this little moment stolen in time. 

Granted, Dinah’s canary suit is not the best material to have her face against, but Laurel makes do with it, if it means having Dinah’s steady heartbeat right against her ear.

The fingers in her hair resume their motions and Laurel feels her eyes begin to droop, the exhaustion from the day and those long hours doing surveillance finally catching up to her. She fights against it at first, deeming it to be too soon to relinquish the feeling of comfort - she doesn’t know if she’ll ever be allowed to be this close to Dinah again, and as such wants to be able to enjoy as many seconds of this as possible.

Sadly her traitorous body fights right back and betrays her, and soon enough Laurel’s eyes close and her breath begins to even out as the first wisps of sleep pull at the edge of her mind. 

She swears she feels the ghost of a gentle kiss being pressed against her forehead just before sleep finally takes her. 


End file.
